A New look for the Westside stage
INTERVIEW WITH Westside Theater’s Technical Director, Spoon Mosley
Did you know… we have almost doubled our theatrical lighting this summer?! Spoon Mosley joined the Westside Theater Team last spring as the theater’s in-house Technical Director, and already, they’ve got us looking real pretty! Hear from them as they talk about the Westside Theater’s summer upgrades and what they’re most excited about as they continue to grow in this new position.
Us: Spoon! Tell us a little bit about the upgrades that you’ve made to the Westside this summer.
Spoon Mosley: The big goal for the summer was to double our theatrical lighting, and we were able to make that happen! It ended up being a little more involved than just adding lights— we also had to upgrade our light board, which now gives us four times the power we had before. We also made some physical upgrades to the space, including adding outlets and lighting tracks where the lights are mounted, and we also had to buy the Genie lift, which is a big upgrade in itself.
Altogether, we added 21 new lights, bringing us from 20 lights to 41!
US: So, for a theater our size, are we now at what is considered normal as far as lighting design and capacity?
Spoon Mosley: It’s hard to compare our space to others because all our new lights are moving lights, which gives them multiple functions within the space. This means we need fewer lights to achieve the same capability that other theaters have. Designing a show will be a lot more versatile and functional than before, and we will have the ability to produce a wider variety of performances at the Westside.
People may not realize this, but the Westside was not originally built to be a theater. We don’t have normal theater structures already built into the space, which include things like pipes, battens that you hang lights on, or electrical systems. We had to run all that ourselves. So, not only did we upgrade our actual lights and lighting capability, but we added a lot of infrastructure, too. I had to add tracks, which is what all the lights are hung up on, and a BIG thanks and shout-out to Jake Nachtigal with Anchor Electric, who ran more outlets for me.
US: How does a process like this start?
Spoon Mosley: I officially started getting the ball rolling on this project in March 2026. But before we ever got to those two weeks in July where we actually hung the lights, I had to do a lot of pre-planning— lots of math, research, and talking to a lot of people about what types of lights would work best for us. A big shout-out to Montana Pro Audio, who we got our lights from, and Alex Bruce, who was a great resource for me while working on this project!
US: As you step into this role, what are you most excited for? Do you have any BIG dreams for the theater?
Spoon Mosley: Typically when you’re TD, you’re in charge of all aspects of the space, but you normally have a main focus. Mine is lighting, and specifically lighting for dance. It feels really exciting to be in a space where that is the main focus.
I'm excited to continue down the path of making everything more organized and seamless within the space. That’s always the goal: walk into the space every day and make it a little better.
Spoon’s lighting upgrade AT A GLANCE!
500 Zip Ties were used
Added 1,000 ft of cable
Heaviest light hung: 34 lbs
Added 8 new lighting tracks to the ceiling
Upgraded breaker system to 6 breakers
Light wattage went from 200 watz to 535 watz
See the new light show for yourself! WT|BBD’s Production Season runs from October to April with five full-season professional productions at the Westside Theater. To check out the 2026|2027 Season Line-Up and purchase Season Subscriptions, CLICK HERE.